On canvas , Vladimir Putin appears stern , Tony Blair looks relaxed and Junichiro Koizumi smiles broadly .

Through paint and brushstroke , former President George W. Bush says he has found not only a rewarding hobby but a unique way to express himself and his impressions of 30 presidents , prime ministers and other world leaders during his time in office .

These never-before-seen portraits , which were done by looking at photographs , will go on public display Saturday at his presidential library in Dallas .

The exhibit is titled `` The Art of Leadership : A President 's Personal Diplomacy . '' It will also include photographs and artifacts of his interactions with these leaders .

`` I think they 're going to be -LRB- like -RRB- , ` Wow , George Bush is a painter , '' ' Bush told NBC 's `` Today '' show in an interview on Friday . `` I 'm sure when they heard I was painting , -LRB- they said -RRB- , ` Wow , I look forward to seeing a stick figure he painted of me . ' ''

One work he is most proud of is that of his father , former President George H.W. Bush .

`` I painted a gentle soul , '' he said .

The Bush Presidential Center is using these paintings to help broaden the image of Bush and is hoping to show `` what it takes to be a personal diplomat , '' said Margaret Spellings , president of the center , emphasizing one-on-one relationships with his fellow heads of state were very important to him .

Most of the world leaders portrayed have not seen the art yet .

George W. Bush to unveil paintings

The rebirth of cool

For newer generations the artwork , and the buzz around them , will show a new side of Bush .

The 43rd President has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity , a bump aided partly by his work trying to save the lives of Africans who have AIDS and efforts to help veterans , including helping them to find jobs .

Forty-nine percent viewed him favorably while 46 % saw him unfavorably according to a poll last June from Gallup .

When Bush left office in 2009 , only 40 % of Americans held a favorable opinion of him , a number which sunk to 35 % in March of that year before beginning a slow climb out from under water .

He 's also earned nods from such publications as BuzzFeed and Vanity Fair that noted his counterculture hipness in painting outside of the art establishment and taking selfies .

Though the former President has opened a new chapter of his life with painting , there were reminders of the controversies surrounding his presidency . Just this week , the Senate Intelligence Committee voted to seek declassification of its report on the secret prisons and interrogation techniques used by his administration on terror suspects after the September 11 , 2001 , attacks .

Bush also has refused to publicly discuss politics .

In a video accompanying the exhibit , he said of the Dalai Lama : `` I painted him as sweetly as I could . ''

For Blair , the former British Prime Minister and one of the leaders he spent the most time with , Bush said he painted `` with a lot of affection '' and was trying to convey `` a passionate person and a reliable person . ''

After reading an essay about Winston Churchill 's art hobby , Bush took up painting two years ago .

`` I gave it a whirl , '' he said in the video .

He hopes the paintings help convey his feelings and friendships to these leaders . He told NBC this will help `` make sure the last chapters of my life are full . ''

Opinion : Bush paints , but is he any good ?

`` I want to get better ''

Bush said he still has a lot to learn with this hobby .

`` I am not a great artist , '' he told his daughter Jenna Bush Hager , who is a `` Today '' show correspondent , in the NBC interview . `` I paint a lot . I want to get better . ''

He has his share of critics .

New York Magazine Art critic Jerry Salz said of some of Bush 's previous artwork `` no natural giftsâ $ '' except the desire to do this . ''

Bush 's family said he is very disciplined and dedicated to his work and will often spend hours in his new studio with music playing . Family and friends said he is very excited about his work .

`` He talks enthusiastically about it , '' Spellings said . Bush `` utterly loves it . ''

Bush uses various photos to see facial expressions , clothing and other attributes that he then uses to craft his paintings .

He started off doing some smaller things like animals . Then an art professor at a local university suggested he try doing world leaders because he was good at capturing details .

He was initially reluctant to share his work publicly .

However , his paintings first came to light after a hacker last year obtained private Bush family emails , which included photos of some of his work .

Some of the other paintings featured dogs . But other paintings were self-portraits of him in the shower and the bathtub while he was looking in a mirror .

`` It 's an invasion of one 's privacy . And yeah , I was annoyed , '' Bush told NBC . `` And nor do I want my paintings to get out . And I found it very interesting the first painting that came out was the one I painted of myself in the bathtub . I did so because I wanted to kind of shock my instructor . ''

Bush on painting : ' I see colors differently '

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George W. Bush 's paintings will go on public display Saturday at his presidential library

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The never-before-seen paintings are of 30 world leaders ; Bush worked from photographs

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Bush has enjoyed a boost in popularity since he left office aided by charitable works , painting

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Bump in the polls comes against a backdrop of criticism over his administration 's torture tactics